Erm, I'm not quite sure what to make of that. Was it just a random thought on the part of the cartoonist, or was it intended to illustrate a point? If the latter, then I think he/she has probably failed.

I think it plays on the fear society has of big people: Fear of being seen with one, fear of becoming one.

The fact that there is a sign warning people is what did it for me. The notion that 'fatties' are this dangerous thing that could fall from the sky and destroy civilization mark this as absurdist parody for me. Kind of 'Chicken Little', in its way.

Not absurdist parody at its best, but pretty clever.

The unattractiveness of the falling fatties, as well as the stereotypes attributed to them (the bikini-clad woman with the ice cream and fries, the guy with the sleeveless tee drinking a beer, the bad skin on the kid with the KISS hat) appear to have been included to mock the views of those (like the book-reading character in the comic) who view fat people as a threat.

Think of this situation in real life: A place where fat people are known to be has a warning posted, to protect folks from coming into contact with them. That's not too far removed from reality. Then, because it's a comic, crank up the preposterousness of the idea to show what a ludicrous concept it is in the first place.

One of the things I do like about it is that the falling fatties seem to come from all walks of life (along with the poorly-dressed are at least one man in a suit and another with shirt and tie).

Also, the fact that this walking guy was blissfully in his own little world before encountering this situation, and is so stressed once it starts happening, speaks volumes.

The little guy, to me, represents mainstream media: All wrapped up in himself, unaware of anything that exists outside of his cocoon. Suddenly, fat people become his biggest problem.

Fat people. Not war, the economy, world hunger, poverty, disease, or environmental concerns.

Isn't that what we've seen on the covers of tabloid magazines for decades now?

so, maybe this cartoon qualifies as art?
it's open to interpretation. it is what you make of it.
some will say it's hateful. some will say it's insightful. some will say it looks wonderfully surreal. some will say it looks poorly drawn.

__________________
And now, a litany of quotes by Ralph Waldo Emerson:

"Character is higher than intellect... A great soul will be strong to live, as well as to think."
"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."
"Don't waste yourself in rejection, nor bark against the bad, but chant the beauty of the good."
"Every sweet has its sour; every evil its good."
"Give all to love; obey thy heart."

Everybody knows that when fatties fall from the sky, they don't go splat with all that mess. They BOUNCE! Duh!

Gena
Department of Cartoon Physics

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Seriously, some people and their lack of ACME training it bewilders the mind!

Truthfully though sometimes art is like poetry, up for interpretation and we give the artist either too much or too little credit. I was never good at poetry and my art pretty much says what it says..."Fat girls are hot, the end".

Life is difficult for thin, hip, smart people. You're just walking along, reading your book, and before you know it some freak weather system has sucked all the fatties out of the trailer park and is raining them down on your head. You'll probably die.

Lesson? Stay away from fat people because, aside from having no reason to exist other than as the butt of mean yet HI-larious jokes and, of course, being the cause of global warming, they will likely crush you.

Well, the cartoon certainly is provacative. I guess it could be interpreted in any way. My first thought was it was a commentary about Americans specifically because one had on a Kiss hat, another had on a t-shirt that said Jackass, and I almost read it as "readneck." Then there was the guy in the business suit that made me think greedy american capitalist scum...Then the landscape is a desert, which I took to represent american culture as a wasteland. Why the little man is walking thru it, I'm not certain. I'm not sure if the little man is supposed to represent a european or an "atypical" american. Eh.

I thought it was a little amusing! Notice once the guy reads the sign he looks around. It's like we are an urban legend, we've heard of the elusive fattie, but haven't been able to catch one on film! Maybe he is making the point that the main stream media can't hide us away forever. I love the KISS hat.